Friday, April 24, 2020

🎣 White's Tackle 🐟 Fishing Report 🎣 4-20-2020 "Good Morning, We are opened back up to the public with normal operations. Offshore yesterday there was a few reports of some nice dolphin around with a few sailfish mixed in. The bottom fishing was good with a few nice snapper and a few cobia mixed in on the reef in 60 to 80ft. The kingfish bite has slowed down a little but a few nice fish are around. Inshore the trout and red bite has been good to the south around the power lines with soft baits and live shrimp. The snook bite has been good in the inlet on the incoming tide with live bait. There has been a few tarpon around on the beach live mullet will produce the best."🎣 White's Tackle 🐟 Fishing Report 🎣 4-22-2020 "Good morning everyone, hope everyone is staying safe. Kingfish fishing has been quite good in 80′ of water, mostly on greenies, and the Yellowfin Tuna bite has also been great out at the edge. Dolphin fishing has overall been a bit slow. Snook fishing in Fort Pierce Inlet has been a little tough due to very clear water, live bait is almost a necessity. Fishing in the IRL has remained good, with some solid Snook being caught around the docks and on the flats, and Seatrout catches have been quite good as well , mostly on soft plastics. Surf fishing has been inconsistent for those that can access the beach, but more Snook are starting to show up, and Pompano numbers seem to be dwindling a bit. Have fun out there."

🎣 South Florida Weekly Fishing Report 🐟 April 23, 2020 Palm Beach Post: "In the Jupiter area, along the bridges and other areas with structure, the snook bite has been good. Any live bait from sardines, to mullet to grunts have been working well. There are plenty of keepers as well. Get one before the season closes on June 1."

🎣 Fishing Report Daytona Beach News Journal 🐟 Jacks of all sizes invade local waters "A roundup of the angling action from Matanzas to Haulover to the St. Johns. Thanks to an influx of jacks, reels are spinning in the Daytona Beach area. "SURF, PIERS: Gene Lytwyn at The Fishin’ Hole said surf fishing is still producing good catches of whiting, pompano and bluefish. “The pompano bite has dropped a little, but some are still being caught,” he said. “I’ve seen some big whiting this week.”

🎣 Jacksonville Fishing Report 🐟 Need to get the kids out? Take them fishing "Read about what’s biting offshore and in the St. Johns River in this week’s Jacksonville Fishing Report. Right now might be the best time to go fishing if you’re simply looking to bend a rod. On top of everything else happening in the world, I don’t think many of us could handle getting skunked. If you’re looking for an easy way to wear the kids out, go get some shrimp and fish the edges of the Intracoastal Waterway before and after the low tide. The ditch is full Spanish mackerel, blue fish, jack crevalle and ladyfish. While they may not be the most popular fish for the table — Spanish mackerel ought to be — they fight hard and are easy to catch. You also stand a decent chance of catching redfish, trout and flounder."

🐟 UF survey assesses coronavirus effect on marine businesses, aims to help industries TCPalm "A Fort Pierce commercial fishing wholesaler has begun selling freshly caught seafood directly from its boats, docked on the northwest side of the North Causeway. Walk-up customers can buy fresh snapper, swordfish and yellowfin tuna at discounted rates as long as supplies last each day. It's how Day Boat Seafood LLC is adjusting to a drop in demand caused by closed restaurants and fewer dinners being sold by those that remain open for takeout or delivery, said managing partner Scott Taylor."

🎣 April 24 fishing report from Byron Stout 🐟 About social distancing: Snook do just the opposite in spring, ganging up and eating everything they see (the proverbial see-food diet) "Warming waters also have heated up appetites in tarpon, redfish, African pompano, cobia, and bluegills. From pond banks to deep wrecks, the bite is on."

🎣 ST AUGUSTINE FISHING REPORT 🐟 Kingfish, mahi on their way "The AtlanticProbably because of the one-two punch of good seas and Corona virus boredom, lots of boats have been outside the inlet over the past week. Some have run to the other side of the Gulf Stream in search of blackfin tuna. And you might reasonably expect to say clear of the virus 70 miles east of the inlet. Most all the boats had double-digit catches and these were 22- to 25- pound fish. One boat iced down 20. The dolphin, or mahi as restaurants prefer, should be here by now, but are not. There were a few reports of a few caught inside the ledge, along with scattered wahoo."

🎣 FLORIDA TODAY fishing report Ed Killer 🐟 Yellowfin tuna, Snapper, Black Drum, and Speckled Trout are Biting "Late April is a great time to go fishing on the Space Coast. When Seas allow, there are barrel-sized Yellowfin tuna to be caught. Dolphin and Wahoo are running the current edges of the Gulf Stream closer to land. Snapper fishing is picking up on the reefs. Inshore, the speckled trout begin to fatten up for the spawn ahead. Snook fishing is still very good and tripletail start coming close to the buoys and inshore."

🎣 Juno Bait Fishing Report 🐟 Weekend Fishing Outlook (4/24-4/26/2020) "SURF/PIER- The Juno Beach Pier remains closed, with no timeline for reopening at the moment. With beach access cut down to basically nothing, surf reports remain very slim. Conditions look right for the pompano to be along the beach the past few days. Spring/summer bait is slowing up along the beach. Hearing some reports of tarpon and jacks moving along the beach."

Friday, April 17, 2020

"Good Morning, Offshore over the weekend a few boats go out with the wind the dolphin bite was good with both live and dead bait in 120 to 150ft with a few nice blackfins mixed in. The snapper bite should pick up as soon as the wind calms down a little there has been some nice mangroves around. The Spanish mackerel have been around in the Vero cove with a few cobia mixed in. Inshore the snook bite has been good with live bait in the inlet and on the flats with a few big reds mixed in. The snapper bite around the bridges has been good with a few nice flounder mixed in."

"With the recent warm weather fishing in the IRL has continued to be good, with numbers and size available for those targeting Snook, with live Pilchards doing most of the business on the larger fish. Redfish are also around in good numbers, taking soft plastics as usual, as well as bait."

"Anglers getting out on the water off of the Jensen Beach area have reported catching a few cobia while working the boils off of the powerplant. The blackfin tuna bite has been good off of Jensen as well the past few days. Trolling squid chains has been working."

"Anglers are not social distancing with fish. There are strong catches in every area. SURF, PIERS: The pompano catch spiked in recent days, according to a post by Roy Mattson (royssurffishing.com). “Lots of pompano on the beaches Volusia and Brevard,” he reported. Other surf staples included whiting and bluefish."

"St Johns and area lakes: Fishing on the river was surprisingly robust this week. Some of the bait shops report they’re the busiest they’ve ever been: Something about the kids driving customers crazy at home. And from most report it looks like the panfish bite is enough to roust anglers out, if even for a couple of hours between the rains.The bluegill and shellcracker bite remains excellent all over the area. There’s bedding activity spread out across the area, but even without that concentration, the catches have been surprisingly good.Crickets are the top selling bait, with wigglers right behind. Those who can mark bream beds with bottom sonar — especially side-imaging units — are on the money. Others are drifting with the winds through likely areas and anchoring when they get some bites."

"Boaters in Port St. Lucie received good news Thursday afternoon. City of Port St. Lucie-managed boat ramps will be re-opening beginning at 8 a.m. April 17.The city announced it would close all four of its boat ramps on March 24. A city spokesperson said leaders made the decision after receiving complaints from the prior weekend of boaters not observing social distancing guidelines. Since the closure, Gov. Ron DeSantis issued an executive order mandating boats remain 50 feet apart and have fewer than 10 passengers on board."

"April on the Space Coast typically means it's time for locals to get their beaches, roads and restaurants back. It means warmer temperatures, light rains and proms for our teens. But this isn't a typical April. Far from it. Fortunately, for all the ways the virus has changed our daily lives, it has not changed fishing patterns. This week was certainly an indication that fishing can provide some normalcy for our strange days. Surf: Melbourne Beach has produced good catches of pompano and whiting for anglers fishing during the incoming tide. Use Fishbites or clam strips for the best action. Anglers fishing with diamond jigs or chrome spoons can catch bluefish and Spanish mackerel which are migrating north the next few weeks."

"INSHORE- Snook fishing remains pretty good right now. As is the case with most things fishing in our area, access remains the biggest challenge. The snook are biting at night around the bridges. Flair Hawk jigs, SpoolTek Swimbaits, and shrimp jigs are all catching the snook pretty good right now. Also hearing some pretty good tarpon reports around the bridges as well. SURF/PIER- Limited access continues to keep the surf reports to a minimum. A few scattered reports of pompano, bluefish, and jacks coming in. Without secluded beach access or a boat it's pretty much a no go these days....On the positive side, when things open up it should be really good!"

""Anybody who can cast can catch a redfish right now. The (blankety) things are getting in the way of catching snook," reports St. James City Capt. George Grosselfinger, who somehow managed five snook between all the 30-inch reds he released Wednesday in northern Pine Island Sound. He also caught five snook among six reds Saturday, north of Regla Island."

Saturday, April 11, 2020

🎣 White's Tackle Fishing Report 🐟 4-7-2020 "Bear point has had a few trout and snook around top water around first light and soft baits once the sun gets up have produced well. The redfish bite has been steady up to the north of Vero with live bait with a few nice snook mixed in."

🐟 White's Tackle Fishing Report 🎣 4-7-2020 "We are open for normal hours. While customers are not permitted in the stores, we will gladly gather items for you, and phone ahead orders can speed things up for you. Fly fishing items can be purchase thru our website, store.whitestackle.com .Fishing in the Indian River continues to produce, with clean water conditions around, and god numbers of fish as well. Seatrout continue to provide plenty of activity, with good numbers along the drop offs of spoil islands and larger fish on the flats. Soft plastics are as usual a good bet, as well as some topwater action starting to happen. Snook have also been active, with some larger fish still around the flats, and the area bridges have yielded some really solid fish. Redfish numbers have been steady, mostly along the shorelines, also falling for soft plastics. Snook fishing at Fort Pierce Inlet has been good as well, mostly on live bait and for those pulling plugs such as Shad Raps. Offshore, Dolphin activity has been sporadic, but Kingfish have been quite active in the 75′ range, mostly on greenies. Good luck out there, and stay safe."

🐟 South Florida Weekly Fishing Report 🎣 April 9, 2020 "The bottom fishing has been good as well with plenty of snapper and grouper being caught on sardines, threadfins and whole squid. Grouper are not in season, however, so they must be released.Straight out from the Lake Worth Inlet, in 200 to 350 feet of water, there is also an excellent bite for blackfin tuna. They are being taken on the troll using small feathers. Most fish are in the three- to 10-pound range.There has been some good king mackerel action on the reef off of The Breakers. Dead sardines or live baits are working well in 80 to 110 feet of water."

🐟 Fishing Report 🎣 Surf fishing ramping up, inshore still strong "SURF, PIERS: The Fishin’ Hole, in downtown Daytona Beach, said surf fishing has seen an increase in pompano catches over the last couple days while adding that there were still plenty of whiting and blue fish in the surf. “Fishing activity is great in our area,” was the report. “Fishing is still a virus-safe activity, if done properly. Please follow social distancing guidelines, so we can continue enjoying this activity.”

Friday, April 3, 2020

🎣 White's Tackle Fishing Report 🐟 3-30-2020 "With the boat ramps being closed this weekend in Martin County we didn’t hear too many reports. If the fishing keeps following the trend it was on last week it should turn out for a great week of fishing. The Cobia fishing has been good out of Stuart with a few nice kingfish mixed in. Out of Ft. Pierce there were a few nice Wahoo caught in 250-300ft. The Mahi fishing has been a little slow but hopefully as we get further into April we get a big push of gaffers."

🎣 Fishing Report 🐟 White's Tackle 4-1-2020 "Good morning everyone. We have some changes coming due to the Coronavirus situation. We will be open as normal thru Friday April 3rd, and be closed Saturday April 4th and Sunday April 5th. We will reopen on the afternoon of Monday April 6th for phone ahead orders only in all three stores for the foreseeable future. We intend to maintain all services and capabilities, but with limited contact with customers for your safety and ours.On the fishing front, there are still quite a few quality Snook around in the Indian River. Due to relatively clear, calm conditions, most of the larger fish have been taken on live bait. There are also good numbers of Redfish and Seatrout taking soft plastics such as the DOA CAL paddle tails and flies such as the Shrimp Tease."

🎣 Daytona Beach News Journal Fishing Report 🐟: Offshore, Halifax, inlet rocking "Before the cold front rolled through the area Tuesday and Wednesday, the fishing was solid in unseasonably warm weather. SURF, PIERS: Gene Lytwyn, from The Fishin’ Hole, filed this report from the coastline. “Surf fishing is still hopping with pompano, whiting and bluefish biting up a storm,” he said. “We’re still hearing about a few big blues.” At the Sunglow Pier anglers were enjoying a steady catch of bluefish, whiting and a pompano here and there"

🎣 South Florida Weekly Fishing Report Palm Beach Post 🐟 - April 2, 2020 "Inshore fishing: Though the beaches in Martin and St. Lucie County remain closed the pompano bite is still really good. If you’re lucky enough to have legal access, Fishbites and sandfleas are working well. There has also been a nice uptick in the whiting and croaker bite along the beaches.If you’re looking for pompano, but don’t have legal beach access, there has been a bite for them at the Stuart and Jensen causeways. Use either Doc’s Goofy Jigs or GSL High Jinx Pompano Jigs. Anglers working a few of the bridges at night are finding excellent snook action. Fishing the Roosevelt and Stuart causeways with live shrimp or mullet has producing good results."

Coronavirus in Florida Ed Killer TCPalm: 7 ways Treasure Coast boaters, leaders can improve life for weekend warriors - Ed Killer "For many, the weekends are the very reason we toil at our Monday through Friday jobs. The "weekend warriors" have their priorities in order. They don't live to work, but rather, work to live. March 27-29, 2020, may go down in history on the Treasure Coast. Let's call it the first weekend of our New World Order."

🎣 Jacksonville 🐟 Fishing Report: Despite stay-at-home order, the boat ramps remain open "Even though Floridians are under a stay-at-home order by Gov. Ron DeSantis to help slow the spread of the coronavirus, Jacksonville’s boat ramps remain open. Fishing remains highly productive as the transition into spring unfolds in our local waters.Fish are driven by the need to eat and reproduce, and both activities have attracted a diverse migration of game fish. Big black drum are arriving in the inlet - and the sheepshead are still eating well after spawning - and the baitfish returning to Mayport have dragged in a motley crew of predators, like big bluefish, Spanish mackerel, jack crevalle and ladyfish. Capt. Dave Sipler said he caught some nice big redfish at the rocks and that the whiting bite has been wide open. He’s catching quantity and quality, with many of the bull whiting topping 15 inches."

🐟 Juno Bait Fishing Report 🎣 4-2-2020 Weekend Fishing Outlook (4/3-4/5/2020) "INSHORE- Snook fishing remains very good inshore right now. The snook are definitely getting ready to move to the inlet. Bridges close to the inlet remain a excellent choice for the snook. Other inshore reports are a bit slow (NO doubt in part to extremely limited access currently).SURF/PIER- Well...Can't really write anything here. Let's just hope when we can get back on the beach and pier the fishing is on fire!"

🎣 April 2020 🐟: Kayak Fishing Forecast "In the greater South Florida area: Things will remain fantastically strong in the South Florida region. The Everglades to the Keys, the opportunities exist for nearly everything that swims in the Atlantic or Gulf waters. Great action will be had for the deepwater guys and gals who want to try their hand at some really big offshore species. The inshore game only gets better with redfish, trout, snook and tarpon lighting it up in the shallows."

🎣Tom Van Horn🐟: April 2020 Indian River Lagoon Coastal Fishing Forecast "As I set down to write my April fishing forecast, I like many of you am landlocked by these troubling times. Dreaming about fishing is currently the extent of my fishing adventures, dreaming of the day I return to the sea with friends and family. Until then, I will share my forecast with you so we can travel together into our imaginations to a place where the fish are happy, hungry and stupid. I’m thankful to all of you, my friend, family and past clients who have shared time on the water with me over the past 20 years. I will also share in my gallery some of the fish caught in April aboard Three Quarter Time. Until our next adventure, stay safe.God Bless,Captain Tom Van Horn"

🎣 Freshwater fishing 🐟 Newschief: Panfish bite around Polk is still hot "At Lake Kissimmee, bass are biting hollow body frogs early around lines of lily pads or areas with mixed pads and grass. Later on, switch to flipping heavier cover with a bait such as a Bass Gorillas’ Jungle Menace creature bait. The bluegill and shellcracker bite has been “hot” around the 27-Palms and the Polluted Waters. Philadelphia Point has also been good, reports Metheney"

🎣 Fishing News Chief 🐟 still allowed under stay-at-home order "Many of the boat ramps throughout the state remained open to the public as of Wednesday, and users were urged to engage in social distancing. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission will update their “Florida Public Boat Ramp Finder” page -- https://bit.ly/39xzqWU -- every 24 hours with information regarding boat ramp status. Information specific to each county can be found under the special comments section. The FWC said if the comment box is blank, this means the ramp is open. The FWC recommends checking with each local government on boat ramp status as well as local emergency orders. The FWC said last week there are no new restrictions on fishing tournaments around the state, and no permit is needed to hold a tournament under existing bag and length limits."

🎣 April 3 fishing report 🐟 from Byron Stout "Fishing, which is to say being as one with Mother Nature, is an officially sanctioned social distancing practice, here in the Fishing Capital of the World. And here in Southwest Florida, it is available to virtually everyone. Unfortunately, most beach access points are closed. On the bright side, most boat ramps remain open. For fishing supplies, situations vary."

Key: LAKE OKEECHOBEENo. 1: Observation Shoal to the West Wall for bass.No. 2: Bluegill off Uncle Joe's Cut.No. 3: Bluegill along the Rim Canal and cuts.

🎣 FLORIDA TODAY fishing report: Governor DeSantis said we can fish. Let's go then "Strange times we live in. But the good news is, we can still fish. Gov. Ron DeSantis announced Wednesday that Floridians can fish and boat as long as proper social distancing guidelines are put into place. That means, don't ruin it for everyone else. For now, Brevard boat ramps will remain open, but spoil islands are closed. Be smart. Fish smart. Have fun and stay safe. TCPalm Ed KillerEditorial note: This column will not appear next week, April 9. It will return April 16. Send your fishing reports in the meantime to ed.killer@tcpalm.com and we'll get them in next week. Thank you for reading."